Cuphead Torrent

Cuphead comprises well over a dozen boss skirmishes, each formulated with the same notion in mind: commence with a straightforward concept, and then amplify it into an irrepressible crescendo that only concludes when you figure out precisely the correct method to halt it. There were instances in the game where I couldn’t overcome that initial hurdle, and the thought of having to thrive under a similar, only more demanding, concept later on felt draining. Nevertheless, in its uniformity, Cuphead manages to prepare for those precise moments. You won’t get through it all in one go, not on the initial attempt. So cherish those instances of enhancement and progress, because that is an indication that victory is on its way.

A fitting example of this is a late-game boss that extends itself from an undulating surface of water and unveils herself as a mermaid. She’s irate, as all the bosses are, and so she utilizes everything within arms reach at her disposal: aquatic creatures, electric serpents, and fragments of debris. As the confrontation advances, she adopts the guise of a medusa-like monster, her serpents transformed into petrifying snakes. It’s never simple, but it becomes progressively more challenging and chaotic as the confrontation unfolds.

The tempo of these confrontations is spaced in a way that you’ll invest much more time with those simplified concepts than the tumultuous ones later on, but those final moments can endure a lifetime when you’re on your 100th attempt. Each boss only lasts a few minutes, so Cuphead makes it quite straightforward to squander hours convincing yourself of just one more attempt.

While Cuphead Torrent Magnet is very demanding, the game boasts incredible frame-by-frame animations that at times render moving on from the boss the most challenging part of the game. Regrettably, your attention has to be on evading these animations, as they truly are a spectacle to behold. It wasn’t until I observed someone else play the game in front of me that I discerned some of the subtleties of the design, like the colossal feline that looms behind a fractured wall before eventually bursting through it and wreaking havoc.

These animations are also your closest companion, as most of the assaults are so swift that you need to be aware they’re impending before they transpire. It’s a marvelous amalgamation of the game’s art style with its game mechanics – everything functions as one continuous motion.

Cuphead Torrent also features a series of platforming levels called “Sprint N’ Firearm that occupy most of the game’s currency. It would have been simple for them to dispatch this segment of the game in, as the boss skirmishes were the focal point, but these levels serve as some of the finest platforming instances of the year. Brimming with distinctive adversaries, challenging leaps, and a variety of challenges — like sprinting and dashing from a colossal cyclops while attempting to land on individual platforms.